1. Field of the Invention
This invention relates generally to a food product slicing machine, and more particularly to an apparatus for cyclically clamping and releasing a food product in a moving product holder.
2. Description of the Related Art
Conventional food product slicing machines, such as the machine disclosed in U.S. Pat. No. 3,760,715 to Grote et al. (which is incorporated herein by reference), reciprocatingly displace food logs along a path through a slicing blade for removing thin slices of the food product during each stroke. Whereas the Grote et al. patent teaches to displace food products through a linear path, other food slicing machines displace food products through an arcuate path. Such a machine is shown in U.S. Pat. No. 4,436,012 to Hochanadel, which is also incorporated herein by reference. In the Hochanadel machine, a food product holder is reciprocatingly pivoted about an axle to swing a food product held therein through a path that includes a blade.
In both types of machines, the food product, often in the shape of an elongated log, is placed in a cylindrical food product holder barrel. The cylindrical barrel is a constant cross section, and can be a circular, rectangular or any other cross section cylinder. The food log is typically dropped into the end of the barrel, which is larger than the largest food log that will be placed therein, in order to accommodate any such log. The barrel can be circular, rectangular or virtually any shape, but is elongated to accommodate the elongated shape of the food log. The food product is fed by gravity downwardly through the holder toward the lower end of the product holder, where the product holder intersects the blade. The lower end of the food product slides along a first curved plate and a second curved plate that is offset slightly above the first plate. The blade is positioned at the edge of the second plate and is offset the same as the second plate. When the food log is slid along the first plate, it encounters the blade, which removes a slice that is a thickness approximately equal to the offset. Then the newly formed end of the log rests upon the second plate until the product holder, during the backswing portion of the holder's stroke, passes the blade and drops down onto the first plate under the influence of gravity. During the cutting portion of the stroke, the log is sliced again.
It is common for there to be small inconsistencies in food slices due to the movement of the food log in the product holder during cutting. For example, a food log that is half as wide as the product holder can move relative to the product holder its entire width during half of each stroke of the product holder. This movement is undesirable due to the variations in slices that result. Alternatively, if the product holder is the same width of the food log, two problems arise. First, variations in food log dimensions will cause some logs to fit correctly and others to fit incorrectly within the barrel. Second, if there is no space between the food log and the product holder sidewall, loading of the food log will be difficult due to the lack of any tolerance for misalignment of the log with the barrel of the holder, and friction between the food log and the walls of the barrel may prevent the food log from feeding properly due to the force of gravity.
Therefore, the need exists for an apparatus that maintains the food log in position during slicing, permits the food log to fall under the influence of gravity when necessary, and is easily loaded.